Every year, hundreds (if not thousands) of people get charged with public nuisance offences throughout Queensland. They often commit the offence without even realising that they’re doing anything wrong, especially if they’re intoxicated at the time. This article explains the public nuisance offence so that hopefully our readers get a better understanding of the offence.
“Domestic violence” is a commonly misunderstood term which deals with an extremely important issue. Most people would assume that an offence involving domestic violence needs to involve physical violence (such as punching or kicking another person) or extreme emotional violence (such as constantly degrading that person through their words or actions). The legal definition however is much broader. …
Most Australians know that in emergencies, they need to call Triple-Zero (000) for assistance from either the police, ambulance services or the fire departments. Unfortunately, this number has been repeatedly misused by members of the public who call 000 for a wide range of non-emergency reasons ranging from the semi-serious (to report a theft that has already taken place) …
The Queensland Government has introduced an “offender levy” which applies to any offender (other than a child) who is sentenced in a Queensland court on or after 21 August 2012. According to the media statement, the purpose of the offender levy is to help reduce the costs of administering the criminal justice system and also …
There has been a lot of media attention recently on the issue of whether the police can, or should be able to, fingerprint drink drivers. This has resulted in Harper Finch Lawyers receiving a number of enquiries from concerned citizens about whether they’ve been made to provide their fingerprints when they should not have been. …
Continue reading “Fingerprinting for DUI/drink driving offences”
If you have found yourself in the unfortunate position of being caught urinating in public and given a notice to appear in court, it is important that you check exactly what you have been charged with. Many people in this position are charged with a public nuisance offence which carries a maximum penalty of $1,000 …
Continue reading “Urinating in public – a public nuisance offence?”
On 8 November 2010, the powers of the Queensland police were enlarged to give them the ability to issue on-the-spot fines for public nuisance offences in addition to their continuing power to arrest and charge a person.